Google Data

Our interns have the opportunity to work on some of Google’s most cutting edge and innovative projects – not only in engineering, but across sales and other business functions, bringing a fresh perspective to the work done at Google. To show you just how much of an impact interns make and to highlight their unique experiences, we’re bringing you a special blog series: Google Intern Insights. Make sure to look out for the different interns being featured on the blog throughout the summer!

Tell us one fun, outlandish fact about you!
My eyes change color with the weather! They’re usually sea green, but I’ve seen them turn blue, gray, and hazel.

What inspired you to apply for this internship, and what made Google appealing to you as a potential intern?
I heard about the cool things Google does to help small/medium businesses maintain a marketing edge during an information session on my college’s campus and I wanted to see how I could get involved.

What team are you working on at Google? Can you provide us with a high-level description of your summer project?
As a BOLD intern on the SMB Sales team, I help small/medium business owners’ in their online marketing efforts. During my internship, I have contacted around 200 clients by phone or e-mail to discuss their marketing goals and develop a stronger grasp on how to help them. These goals are usually related to promoting brand awareness or finding a way to convert clicks on an ad to an actual valuable transaction.

What’s the best part about working with your manager? What about your team?
The SMB Sales team is full of hilarious characters who keep the workplace fun and upbeat. While we know there is work to be done, we definitely keep it as Googley as possible. My manager, in particular, is definitely one of the most animated. She rallies the interns by performing song parodies about Google Adwords at our weekly team meetings.

We all know Googlers and interns love the food and the other benefits. Outside of some of the well-known perks, what’s your favorite part about working at Google?
Every other week, interns from every office have a chance to video conference with top Google executives. They talk about their career paths, experiences with Google, and the future of the organization. I’ve never heard of any other internship program with this kind of opportunity and I think it’s definitely beneficial to interns’ professional development.

What’s something you’ve accomplished during your internship (thus far) that you’re most proud of? Or something you’re looking forward to working on?
I worked with one client who told me that before I called him, he was considering closing his business due to low foot traffic. I was able to create a marketing strategy to increase the amount of people interested in his services and I am happy to report it looks like his business is doing better than ever! It definitely was rewarding to see our hard work pay off.

What does “being Googley” mean to you?
Being Googley means taking a unique approach to solving problems each and every time you are presented with a new one. It’s refusing to accept limitations and always asking, “Why not?”

If you could give one piece of advice to potential student applicants, what would it be?
While professional experience is definitely important, make sure to let your personality shine through in your resumé and in your interview. Google is full of extraordinary people who do fun and amazing things. Recruiters want to hear about the amazing things that you are interested in as well!

Best meal at Google so far?
The Battle Creek Cafe did “Thanksgiving in July” a couple weeks ago. We had turkey, ham, stuffing, mashed potatoes, and a bunch of other Thanksgiving foods. It’s my favorite holiday so you could say I was a little excited.

Dream Google office to visit?
I really want to visit Sao Paolo or Dublin. Those offices also have a strong SMB presence and I would love to hear about what they do differently in terms of Adwords.

Best intern event you’ve attended?
The interns all got together to play whirlyball the other weekend. It’s a favorite pastime in the Midwest that basically mixes basketball and lacrosse while driving a go-kart. We all looked ridiculous and it was a ton of fun.

Want to learn more about internships at Google? Check out our Student Careers Site. Additionally, follow Google Students on Google+ and use the hashtag #googleinterns to keep up with Intern Insights this summer.

Posted by Shawn Dye, University Programs

1. Things aren’t always what they seem … Just like Pittsburgh surprises as a booming tech city, the food in the office surprises as well. Mashed potato cupcakes and fried egg lemon bars were served on April Fool’s Day at Google Pittsburgh–just one of many April Fool’s pranks played across all of the Google offices.

2. Touchdown. Every Googler has hometown pride. To celebrate the Seattle Seahawks’ big Super Bowl win, breakfast the next day at Google Seattle consisted of Gatorade, Skittles (Seahawks running back Marshawn Lynch’s signature snack), and cold pizza. Though it strayed from the balanced breakfast interns have become accustomed to at Google, it was a fun twist meant to honor the hometown champs!

3. Play Ball. When interns can’t get to the ball game on opening day, Google brings the ballpark to them. Well, the food at least. To celebrate the Colorado Rockies’ opening day, Google Boulder served up all stadium food, including cotton candy and pretzels. It may have left the Boulder interns a little sluggish in the afternoon, but that’s nothing a Red Bull from the mini-kitchen can’t fix. Go Rockies!

4. Bacon and Beer. Every Googler loves a healthy competition. And while this bacon and beer competition wasn’t exactly heart-healthy, it sure was delicious. On the day of the USA vs. Canada Olympic Men’s Hockey game in February, Google Cambridge served up Canadian bacon and beer versus American bacon and beer

5. Welcome to Google Kitchen Stadium! For one day, the Googleplex in Mountain View transformed into the Kitchen Stadium with students from Stanford University participating in an Iron Chef competition. The secret ingredient? Collaboration, of course!

6. Giant Strawberries. In true Google form, interns can always find a nutritious snack nearby. These super sized strawberries are just one example of the many ways we help keep Googlers and interns happy and healthy. What can we say? We’re always striving for bigger and better at Google, even when it comes to fruit!

7. Guest Chefs of NYC. New York is known for a lot of things, and excellent food is definitely one of them. With so many well-known chefs visiting the office, New York interns experience all kinds of delicious, decadent food. Just one more perk that attracts Googlers to the Big Apple!

8. Secret Lunch Spots. You never know what you might find when exploring the Mountain View Googleplex at lunch time. News of this “pop-up” style hallway cafe only gets around by word of mouth. Small eateries from San Francisco are invited to Google to serve up some of the best food in the Bay Area, and on any given day you can choose from a selection of foods from all over the world! But shhhh, it’s a secret …

Posted by Andrew Pierson and Maggie Hohlfeld, Intern and University Programs

Back in February, Google gave hundreds of student teams across the world an AdWords online advertising budget of US$250 and three weeks to help a local business improve their marketing campaign in the seventh annual Google Online Marketing Challenge. Over 14,000 students from more than 80 countries and territories participated in this year’s Challenge and the results are in!

I. AdWords Business Awards

The AdWords Business Awards recognize the GOMC teams that made an outstanding difference to their business partners via superb online marketing campaigns.

Global Winner

The Global Winning team comes from the Warsaw School of Economics in Poland, under Professor Tymoteusz Doligalski. The team of Mateusz Rydlewski, Przemek Dmochowski, Agnieszka Żdanuk, Marek Janisiewicz, and Paweł Zawadzki worked with Legia Warszawa, one of the oldest and most titled Polish soccer clubs.

Regional Winners

• The Asia & Pacific Winner comes from The University of the Philippines, under Professor James Ryan Jonas in the Philippines. The team of Julian Anton Adia Yao, Allen Thomas B. Calica, Hillary Corinne L. Joven, Jadiene Shani Y. Teng, and Christelle C. Lao worked with KPub BBQ, located in Bonifacio Global City, a Korean barbeque restaurant and pub, specializing in a meat all you can eat buffet.

• The Americas Winner comes from Fanshawe College in Canada, under Professor Liz Gray. The team of Luis Guerrero, Benjamin Cartmell, Jihoon Han, Vit Sochor, and Nikola Ledwonova worked with Novack’s Uniform Solutions, a company that distributes high-performance, specialized professional uniform apparel.

• The Europe Winner comes from the University of Applied Sciences Würzburg-Schweinfurt in Germany, under Professor Mario Fischer. The team of Lennart Geerdes, Konrad Hagelstein, Stephanie Beck, Hendrik Schöpe, and Florian Uhlirsch worked with Aquahandel.de, an online shop specializing in Ornamental fish for aquariums and garden ponds.

• The Middle East & Africa Winner comes from the Ladoke Akintola University of Technology in Nigeria, under Professor Arulogun Oladiran Tayo. The team of Adedoyin Jelil Opeyemi, Akadiri Olawale Olugboyega, Adesina Jamiu Olawale, Olayanju Abiodun Ibraheem, Salami Ismail Tunde, and Adeosun Oluwole Titus worked with Automedics limited, an automobile maintenance workshop offering free advisory car care tips.

II. Google+ Social Media Marketing Awards

For the third year, we’re happy to present the winners of the Social Media Award, awarded to the GOMC team that runs the best Google+ page for their company or organization.

Global Winner

This year’s Global Winner comes from Kaunas University of Technology in Lithuania under Professor Elena Vitkauskaite. The team of Aivaras Juška, Povilas Mastauskas, Monika Ambrazevičiūtė, Rūta Žemaitytė, and Justina Mizeraitė worked with Miegantys Drambliai, a company offering rock climbing classes and services.

Regional Winners

• The Americas Winner comes from Fanshawe College in Canada, under Professor Liz Gray. The team of Luis Guerrero, Benjamin Cartmell, Jihoon Han, Vit Sochor, and Nikola Ledwonova worked with Novack’s Uniform Solutions, a company that distributes high-performance, specialized professional uniform apparel.

• The Europe Winner comes from Kaunas University of Technology in Lithuania, under Professor Elena Vitkauskaite. The team of Ieva Ulytė, Lina Kižytė, Julius Valantiejus, Povilas Gimžauskas, and Šarūne Zinkevičiutė worked with Woxx Barbers- Vilnius, a traditional barbershop providing mens haircuts, and beard and mustache styling services.

• The Asia & Pacific Winner comes from Indian Institute of Management Indore in India, under Professor Srinivas Gunta. The team of M Nitin Teja Reddy, Yukti Arora, Krishna GS Chirraavuru, Anne Mary Sebastian, and Santhanam Balaji worked with afkar.me by Intigral, a 4 month incubation program to help start-ups create a digital product in MENA region.

• The Americas Winner comes from Pennsylvania State University in the United States, under Professor Jim Jansen. The team of Elizabeth Sheaffer, Stephen Sheaffer, Erica Brinker, and Eric Pitts worked with Centre County PAWS, offering dog and cat shelter and adoption services.

• Unfortunately, this year none of the Social Media Marketing campaigns submitted by teams from Middle East & Africa made to the final, therefore the Academic Panel has selected an additional Regional Winner from one of the other three regions.

III. AdWords Social Impact Awards

The Social Impact Awards recognize the GOMC teams that made an outstanding difference to their non-profit partners via superb online marketing campaigns.

• 1st Place is awarded to Hanna K Macdonald, Amanda Tadgell, and Kaitlyn Krause, who were taught by Professor Liz Gray at Fanshawe College in Canada. The team partnered with Museum London, the leading establishment for the collection and presentation of visual art and material culture.

• 2nd Place goes to Shu Su, Neha Kejriwal, Benjamin Smith, and Sarah Burge, who were taught by Professor Steven Koch at The University of Houston in The United States. The team partnered with the Houston Grand Opera, which provides live opera performances that are relevant and financially accessible to the public.

• 3rd Place is awarded to Randall Miller, Saket Maheswari, Charles Shelton, and Varuniya Pushparajan, who were taught by Professor Steven Koch at The University of Houston in The United States. The team partnered with the Space Center Houston, a place where people can experience space; its history, present and future.

2014 Team Results have been posted to GOMC Past Challenges.

Congratulations to all 2014 Winners and a big thank you to all teams that participated in this year’s Challenge.

To learn more about the Google Online Marketing Challenge and to pre-register for next year’s Challenge, please watch the GOMC video and visit our website: www.google.com/onlinechallenge

Posted by Claire Lloyd & McKelle Holyoak, Global Business

Our interns have the opportunity to work on some of Google’s most cutting edge and innovative projects – not only in engineering, but across sales and other business functions, bringing a fresh perspective to the work done at Google. To show you just how much of an impact interns make and to highlight their unique experiences, we’re bringing you a special blog series: Google Intern Insights. Make sure to look out for the different interns being featured on the blog throughout the summer!

Tell us one fun, outlandish fact about you!
I once petted a cheetah and fed a giraffe.

What inspired you to apply for this internship, and what made Google appealing to you as a potential intern?
Google products have changed the way the world works and I wanted to be a part of that. Eleven years ago, I googled “USA University” from a 10 cent-per-minute cyber-cafe in Nairobi, Kenya. That led me to applying to Yale, coming to the US and completely changing my life.

What team are you working on at Google? Can you provide us with a high-level description of your summer project?
I’m working in Google Apps as a Product Manager Intern. My job this summer is to figure out how developers can build great apps that integrate with Google. As a former Software Engineer, it’s exciting to be on the other side of the table and have the freedom to craft a product vision.

What’s the best part about working with your manager? What about your team?
My manager Ronald has really great product insights and truly cares about how to make user experiences better. I’ve found the same to be true about the rest of my team as well. Everyone’s also really open and excited about helping the interns!

We all know Googlers and interns love the food and the other benefits. Outside of some of the well-known perks, what’s your favorite part about working at Google?
My favorite part is learning about Googlers and their amazing lives. I’ve chatted with one Engineering Director who started, developed and sold her start-up while raising an infant. Another PM and his team ran with a 20% project and came up with Google Cardboard in six weeks. I’m surrounded by truly remarkable people.

What’s something you’ve accomplished during your internship (thus far) that you’re most proud of? Or something you’re looking forward to working on?
I’m excited to have biked to work almost every day using Google’s free intern bike program. I haven’t done that since I was a kid. I’m also looking forward to sharing my summer presentation with my team.

What does “being Googley” mean to you?
Being Googley means being smart, humble and a big dreamer.

If you could give one piece of advice to potential student applicants, what would it be?
Talk to as many Googlers as you can find!

Best meal at Google so far?
I’ve had delicious Indian food at Baadal, Google’s sit-down restaurant, with some other PM interns and Ken Norton, a former PM and partner at Google Ventures. The chai (milk tea) was amazing!

Outside of being a Google intern, what are some fun things you do outside the classroom/office throughout the year?
I’m interested in social innovation, and I’ve co-invented a new type of splint for burn survivors in Nepal.

Best overheard conversation in a MK/cafe/elevator
If you don’t get here by 9am, forget about it. The Dang [toasted coconut chips] are gone!

What is something that you’ve learned thus far about working on a team and/or in a professional environment?
Meetings are more fun when you get from the fourth floor to the third in a giant tube slide!

Posted by Shawn Dye, University Programs Team

Our interns have the opportunity to work on some of Google’s most cutting edge and innovative projects – not only in engineering, but across sales and other business functions, bringing a fresh perspective to the work done at Google. To show you just how much of an impact interns make and to highlight their unique experiences, we’re bringing you a special blog series: Google Intern Insights. Make sure to look out for the different interns being featured on the blog throughout the summer!

Tell us one fun, outlandish fact about you!
I can tie a necktie in 12 different ways!

What inspired you to apply for this internship, and what made Google appealing to you as a potential intern?
In the summer of 2012, I attended Google BOLD Immersion in Mountain View, California. I applied to Immersion on a whim, to be honest, and thought that Google sounded like an awesome place to work. After my experience at Immersion, I knew that my hunch was spot on. I applied for, and participated in, my first BOLD Internship for the summer of 2013. I am now a returning BOLD intern for the summer of 2014, and I can absolutely say that I’ve had the best three summers of my life since getting involved with this company.

I think the thing that primarily drew me to Google in the first place was the emerging technology. I always imagined myself on the bleeding edge of what’s possible, and no company embodies this as much as Google. From self-driving cars to computers in our glasses, Google has continually changed the landscape of technology for the last 15 years, and I always wanted to be a part of that innovation.

What team are you working on at Google? Can you provide us with a high-level description of your summer project?
I’m working with Product Quality Operations (PQO). That’s a long way of saying that we help protect Google products from spam and hacking.

Personally, I’ve been working on a document for PQO analysts that answers common questions on what to do when handling Personally Identifiable Information (PII). Google takes its users’ data very seriously, and as such, many analysts are limited in what data they can draw regarding suspicious accounts. It’s been my job to interview analysts and find out the issues and questions that they have, and then consult with the Privacy Working Group to make sure they are given comprehensive answers.

What’s the best part about working with your manager? What about your team?
The best part about working with my manager is that she’s always ready to give me advice and feedback about how I can do better and grow as an employee and as a person. Whenever I go into my one-on-one meetings with her, I’ll typically ask for feedback and try to find ways to make my workflow more efficient and effective for the team. She’s provided words of wisdom on many different subjects at Google, from how to make a slide deck look great to handling tough questions during a presentation.

So far this summer, my team has been a great resource for mentorship in different areas of Google. They’ve advised me on interesting things to do at the company (such as professional development and enhancement courses), and I always enjoy eating lunch with them.

We all know Googlers and interns love the food and the other benefits. Outside of some of the well-known perks, what’s your favorite part about working at Google?
I love the diversity of career options. I’ve been in contact with many employees here over the past two summers, and what I’ve learned more than anything else is that people at Google aren’t afraid to try something different. Whether it’s taking on a side project you don’t know much about or making a career change and shifting to another team, another department or another part of the globe, Googlers overwhelmingly seem to jump in feet first and are eager to learn and grow in new areas.

What’s something you’ve accomplished during your internship (thus far) that you’re most proud of? Or something you’re looking forward to working on?
My favorite project to work on so far this summer is actually quite different from my main project. Basically, I saw that a budget dashboard was in disrepair and asked my manager if I could work on it. With her support, I proceeded to work steadily on the dashboard and I hope to have it fully functional before I leave this summer.

What does “being Googley” mean to you?
Googleyness is the optimism and innovative spirit to take any problem in the world and break it down in such a way that it becomes solvable. The people here are both brilliant and driven, and that’s why Google is able to tackle such giant challenges as a company. Someone who is Googley is great with collaborating with others in pursuit of solutions to complex issues.

If you could give one piece of advice to potential student applicants, what would it be?
Just be yourself. There are tons of books you can read on interviews and advice on forums about essay writing, resume building and marketing yourself, but at the end of the day, nothing beats being honest with a recruiter about who you are and where you want to go.

Dream Google office to visit?
Sydney. Because of the beaches. And the opera houses!

Best meal at Google so far?
Cafe Moma’s legendary Applewood Smoked Bacon on Tuesday and Thursday mornings. Seriously, I don’t even work in that building and I still make it a point to visit Cafe Moma twice a week.

Best intern event you’ve attended?
This one actually took place last year. Google interns were invited to the premier of The Internship at Kabuki Theatre and afterwards Owen Wilson and Vince Vaughn showed up. It was epic!

Posted by Maggie Hohlfeld, University Programs Team

1. Interns work on real projects.

Interns work on high level, cutting edge projects–no photocopying for hours or retrieving coffee here! Our interns work on everything from Chrome OS, Google Docs, Google [x], and YouTube. A lot of interns who come back to work in full time roles at Google are surprised to see that the code they created as interns still exists and is being put to use.

2. So much food.

It’s true–interns, along with all other Googlers, receive free meals and snacks every day. That’s right, free breakfast, lunch, and dinner! Our café staff even has to double the amount of food during the summer months to accommodate our growing population of interns. There are around 1.2 million meals served per year worldwide!

3. The conference bikes.

We celebrate collaboration more than anything at Google–even when it comes to pedaling a bike! Interns get a chance to work with their teammates by participating in groups, team outings, and conference bike meetings! Every person on the conference bike has to contribute to making the bike move, so there is no way to sit quietly through this meeting.

4. Awesome guest speakers.

This summer Google NY had the cast of Marvel’s latest movie, Guardians of the Galaxy, swing by for a Q&A! Not to mention our past visitors, such as Arianna Huffington, Noam Chomsky, Stephen Colbert, and the Parks and Recreation cast. There’s always someone fascinating visiting Google!

5. Dooglers.

Google offices are dog-friendly so you’ll see quite a few canines running around the office. The London office even has a Wall of Fame for a few of the “Dooglers” who visit the office regularly.

6. Dodging Scooters in the office is a daily occurrence.

Our New York office spans an entire city block, which means getting from one meeting to the next can be a little tricky. Hence the scooters! Interns learn quickly how to balance their laptops while scootering around the office.

7. Access to amazing co-workers.

From the head of Search, Amit Singhal, to the head of YouTube, Susan Wojcicki, to Peter Norvig, co-author of “Artificial Intelligence: A Modern Approach,” Google is full of exceptionally smart people from all over the world and from a number of different universities and backgrounds. One of the most valuable aspects of the Google internship is access to these amazing Googlers.

8. You’re too embarrassed to tell your fellow Googlers how many times you’ve gotten lost in the office.

The Google headquarters in Mountain View, California spans over 3.5 million square feet of office space! There are well over 25 different cafeterias, more than 100 micro-kitchens, and seven fitness centers.

Just in case interns get lost, there are a number of landmarks that make the campus unique. You never thought you would give someone directions by saying “turn right at Stan the T-Rex!”

Posted by Isabel Baylor and Maggie Hohlfeld, Intern and University Programs Team

From Google Glass to Project Loon, Adwords to Docs, our interns have the opportunity to work on some of Google’s most cutting edge and innovative projects. Interns also work across sales and other business functions, bringing a fresh perspective to the work done at Google. To show you just how much of an impact interns make and to highlight their unique experiences, we’re bringing you a special blog series: Google Intern Insights. Make sure to look out for the different interns being featured on the blog throughout the summer!

Meet Ryan Drapeau, a rising junior at the University of Washington, majoring in Computer Science. Ryan is a Software Engineering Intern this summer at the Google Headquarters in Mountain View. Outside of his school work, Ryan is an avid photographer and loves experimenting with the different technical aspects of photography (his current obsession is welding glass photography). Originally from Los Angeles, he also enjoys hiking and exploring amazing sites, with his camera in-tow, of course!

Tell us one fun, outlandish fact about you!
In high school, I ate sushi for 8 consecutive days (sometimes more than once per day). Concerned for my health, my parents confiscated my wallet to keep me from buying more, unfortunately putting an end to the streak.

What inspired you to apply for this internship, and what made Google appealing to you as a potential intern?
Google’s mission is to not only improve technology for those who already have it, but to also bring access to those who don’t. When designing a product, it can be easy to limit our scope to our own experiences, but at Google, it is essential to design around the user. Projects like Android One and Loon are bringing access to the world’s information and knowledge to the ~5 billion people around the world without Internet. Innovation does not come from mere 10% improvements – solutions that offer a 10x improvement push the industry and the world forward. This attitude and moonshot thinking is what attracted me to Google.

What team are you working on at Google? Can you provide us with a high-level description of your summer project?
I work on the Accessibility Engineering team in Google Research in Mountain View, CA. As a team, we build innovative products and solutions to help make the world’s information universally accessible to everyone. We ensure Google’s technologies are accessible in order to empower people with disabilities to be socially engaged, productive, and independent.

What’s the best part about working with your manager? What about your team?
The best part about working with my manager, Phil, is the amount of responsibility and ownership he gives me. I’m treated like any other member of the team and given the opportunity to voice my opinion during meetings. As an intern, it is amazing to have my input be considered and implemented in our project.

My team is great! Everyone is friendly, welcoming, and extremely helpful. They have made the experience better than I could have imagined. Everyone on the team also knows how to handle a prank, which is good considering the interns ganged up and covered our coworker’s desk with water bottles we had saved up from the entire summer.

We all know Googlers and interns love the food and the other benefits. Outside of some of the well-known perks, what’s your favorite part about working at Google?
The people. I’m constantly surrounded by people that are smarter than me and I think that is important. It creates an atmosphere filled with learning and opportunities for improvement. There is an incredible amount of knowledge here and plenty more waiting to be discovered. To be able to be a part of that as an intern is a wonderful experience.

What does “being Googley” mean to you?
Being Googley, to me, means to not be afraid. Don’t be afraid to ask questions for help. Don’t be afraid to tackle problems too big for one person. Don’t be afraid to be curious. Having an audacious attitude is Googley.

If you could give one piece of advice to potential student applicants, what would it be?
The biggest piece of advice I could give is to have passion and drive. Studying and memorizing data structures can only get you so far. To really succeed, find your niche within computer science and technology. Find out what inspires you in the field and industry at large and follow it. The more passionate you are about your work, the more you will accomplish.

But it doesn’t hurt to memorize these either.

Best meal at Google so far?
Any meal involving sushi (KitchenSync and Atom regularly serve it).

Outside of being a Google intern, what are some fun things you do outside the classroom/office throughout the year?
When I can, I love to get outdoors and use my camera. Photography is a visual poetry in my mind; it’s a hobby where I can spend many hours trying to get a single shot. Some of my most memorable nights last year were spent editing photos until sunrise with a close friend. Whether I am shooting long exposures of Snoqualmie Falls, or trying to show my friend how to balance during a levitation pose, I enjoy every frame of it.

Best overheard conversation in a MK/cafe/elevator
I had a conversation with some Googlers about the possibility of the universe being a part of a Matrix-like simulation. Most people would laugh it off, but we had a serious debate about whether or not it would be theoretically possible.

Dream Google office to visit?
Google Zürich because working in a ski lift for a day sounds pretty great.

Best intern event you’ve attended?
The Intern Boat Cruise – I cannot think of a better way of meeting other interns than on a boat dressed in your finest 80’s clothes.

Want to learn more about internships at Google? Check out our Student Careers Site. Additionally, follow Google Students on Google+ and use the hashtag #googleinterns to keep up with Intern Insights this summer.

Posted by Shawn Dye, Intern Programs Team

Google has interns in cities all over the world this summer. Take a look at this list of 11 cities with Google interns to give you a taste of how each of these locations contributes to Google’s multifaceted and unique culture.

11. Sydney, AU

Our Sydney office, the greenest building in Sydney, sits on the waterfront in Pyrmont with views of the Sydney Harbour Bridge, The Rocks, and Darling Harbour. Inside, you’ll find a “living wall” made of plants, a tire swing, a library with a nap pod, and some amazing coffee machines. When interns really need a break, they check out a kayak or one of our electric cars (Mitsubishi I-MiEVs).

10. Dublin, IE

This Google office embraces Dublin’s unique Irish culture with graffiti murals and classic scenes from Irish folklore covering the walls. Interns often like to get a game of Blackball at the billiards table when they need a break. And, of course, Google Dublin couldn’t go without a conference room named “James Joyce.”

9. Los Angeles, CA, USA

Googlers play a large part in the growing technology industry in LA. When interns aren’t working together improving YouTube’s or Google’s search experiences, they might watch a movie at the office’s outdoor movie theatre or spend time at the beach a mere two blocks away from the office.

8. Waterloo, Canada

Located in the historic Lang Tannery Building, Google Waterloo is best known for being the birthplace of Gmail for Mobile and, of course, the site for Canada’s only officially recognized in-office slide. Waterloo is one of Google’s largest offices for fall and winter tech interns.

7. Seattle/Kirkland, WA, USA

With offices on either side of Lake Washington, this Google location encompasses both the urban and the suburban in the Pacific Northwest. With much of Google’s infrastructure developed under our belt here, interns have the opportunity to work on essential products like Google+ Hangouts and Chrome.

6. Pittsburgh, PA, USA

Google Pittsburgh, the former Nabisco Factory, holds over 400 Googlers—not to mention a giant hammock nicknamed “the trapeze net.” The office is located in Bakery Square, just minutes from Carnegie Mellon University and the University of Pittsburgh. Interns in the Pittsburgh office get the opportunity to work on site reliability and products like Mobile and Google Shopping.

5. Paris, FR

Located in a renovated hôtel, our Google Paris office has distinctly Parisian touches. Interns snack on wine and cheese for TGIF meetings, take meetings in a Citroën Deux Chevaux-turned-phone booth, and eat at a cafeteria nicknamed Les Deux Algos (short for algorithms). C’est la vie chez Google! (That’s life at Google!)

4. Singapore

Like the country itself, the Google Singapore office is home to both locals and foreigners. We give a distinct twist to the ways we have fun-lah, from Chinese New Year parties to Hari Raya Puasa, Indian holidays and weekly celebrations themed after countries where we do business. Interns enjoy the newly decked-out micro-kitchens, modeled after traditional street food stalls. Our Singapore office brings together a diverse community of Googlers – fitting, in a country with four official languages (English, Chinese, Malay and Tamil).

3. Zurich, CH

Self-proclaimed as “the real Mountain View.” Not because they are the company’s engineering headquarters for Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA), but because of the views out of the top-floor Sky Lounge’s windows. The Alps may look impressive in Google Earth, but in person, they’re nothing less than spectacular. The Zurich office also hosts Google’s annual EMEA Intern summit, where Google interns from across Europe get an opportunity to meet each other and learn more about what their colleagues are working on at other offices.

2. New York, NY

If you can make it here, you can make it anywhere. We take that to heart at Google New York—constantly reinventing ourselves to strive for the best. With thousands of Googlers working in an office that takes up an entire New York city block, the energy here is undeniable. Interns in New York enjoy five incredible cafes, scooters, and a ladder for when they can’t wait for the elevator.

1. Mountain View, CA

Where it all began. Though the company has grown from Larry and Sergey working out of a garage to the Mountain View campus known as the Googleplex, the mission is still the same: to organize the world’s information and make it universally accessible. Interns enjoy numerous perks, but to name a few: beach volleyball, bowling alleys, 25 cafeterias, and weekly TGIF gatherings where Googlers are encouraged to ask senior management anything and everything. Changing the world one user at a time truly begins here.

Posted by Maggie Hohlfeld and Sean Sweeney, University and Tech Intern Programs Teams

Intern season is in full swing and Google is excited to be hosting the largest ever class of female technical interns across 18 offices in North America. Google hosted its second annual We Are GWE (Google Women Engineers) intern summit at the Googleplex in Mountain View, CA. Over 270 female technical interns from across Google’s product areas joined together for two days of developmental and networking activities and celebration.

During this event, Google provided interns with the opportunity to build their skills, network with fellow interns, engage with full-time GWE in various stages of their careers, and be inspired by this growing community of women in tech. The first day of the summit kicked off with interns taking part in professional development classes and technical interview trainings. The interns asked lots of great questions and gained insight on what engineers look for during the interview process.

Day two was spent hearing from and engaging with GWE from across a wide range of roles and teams including Chrome OS, Google [x], Knowledge Engine, and Youtube. When interns weren’t learning about some of Google’s most exciting products, they participated in technical and career discussions while getting the opportunity to network with both full-time and intern GWE. A lot of fruitful conversation was had around the challenges facing female engineers and encouraging our interns to grow into strong role-models in their communities and on their campuses.

To close out the We Are GWE summit, the Tech Intern Programs team hosted a luau themed party in front of Charlie’s at the Googleplex. Interns and Googlers got the chance to let down their hair and dance the evening away with great music, food and drinks.

As much as Google celebrates the accomplishments of our female technical interns, it encourages them to be audacious leaders. That’s why we’re excited to invite our global female interns to the upcoming Grace Hopper Celebration in October! We hope that our interns become even more inspired and motivated as they engage with world renowned female technicians and scholars.

Photos courtesy of Amy Harrity Photo

Posted by Shawn Dye, Tech Intern Programs

From Google Glass to Project Loon, Adwords to Docs, our interns have the opportunity to work on some of Google’s most cutting edge and innovative projects. To show you just how much of an impact interns make and to highlight their unique experiences, we’re bringing you a special blog series: Google Intern Insights.

For today’s post, meet Elmar Peters, a Hardware Engineering intern from the Netherlands. Elmar will graduate in summer 2015 with a Bachelors of Science in Electrical Engineering from the University of Twente. While Elmar is excited by his internship working with both Google Glass and the self-driving car teams within Google [x], he also uses his time in California to see as many new sights as possible. An avid traveler, Elmar has enjoyed a trip to Yosemite and a hike along Redwood Creek in Humboldt.

What inspired you to apply for this internship, and what made Google appealing to you as a potential intern?
I’ve been following Google for quite a while–the informal working environment and innovative products really interested me. I became really interested in Google and decided to apply for an internship when I heard about Google Glass and the self-driving car.

What team are you working on at Google? Can you provide us with a high-level description of your summer project?
I’m an Electrical Engineering intern on the Google Glass team. I’m prototyping several aspects of the Glass hardware design. Besides my work at Glass, I’m also working on a 20% project for the self-driving car team. Sometimes, when you’d like to help work on a project or team, or have an idea of something you’d like to try, Google will allow you to spend 20% of your time working on that along with your normal role.

What’s the best part about working with your manager? What about your team?
I like the amount of responsibility my manager and my team gives me. At Google I’m working on real projects that are crucial for Google Glass. The fact that they give me all of this responsibility as an intern is really special.

We all know Googlers and interns love the food and the other benefits. Outside of some of the well-known perks, what’s your favorite part about working at Google?
I really like the cool projects at Google and the way Google innovates. If you have a new idea, people will encourage you to work on it.

That being said though, what’s the best gFit class?
It might not be a gFit class, but I really like swimming in one of the “endless pools” on campus.

What does “being Googley” mean to you?
To me, being Googley means being super friendly and doing other people a favor when you can. People at Google are always ready to help you out when you are stuck on something. The friendly atmosphere at Google is one of the best things about working here.

Dream Google office to visit?
I would really like to visit the google offices in Tokyo sometime. The pictures I’ve seen look really stylish!

Outside of being a Google intern, what are some fun things you do outside the classroom/office throughout the year?
I like to travel–I’ve visited 22 countries so far. I’m originally from the Netherlands so my internship in Mountain View is like a work and holiday. While I’m interning here in California I go on weekend trips really often. After my internship, I will also stay in the US for a while to travel and to go to Burning Man!

If you could give one piece of advice to potential student applicants, what would it be?
I always worked on a lot of side projects during my study. This really helped me gain some practical experience that turned out to be really useful in the work I’m doing now. So I would advise every student to work on a side project that they are passionate about during their studies!

Want to learn more about internships at Google? Check out our Student Careers Site. Additionally, follow Google Students on Google+ and use the hashtag #googleinterns to keep up with Intern Insights this summer.

Posted by Sidnie Davis, Intern Programs Team

Our interns have the opportunity to work on some of Google’s most cutting edge and innovative projects – not only in engineering, but across sales and other business functions, bringing a fresh perspective to the work done at Google. To show you just how much of an impact interns make and to highlight their unique experiences, we’re bringing you a special blog series: Google Intern Insights. For today’s post, meet Sonali Mehta, an intern on the Content and partner Operations Team at YouTube in San Bruno, CA.

Tell us one fun, outlandish fact about you!
I have a YouTube channel where I upload videos of myself singing and playing the piano. One of my covers was once featured on a TV show in Brazil!

What inspired you to apply for this internship, and what made Google appealing to you as a potential intern?
Google is one of the most innovative and exciting companies to work for. My passions lie in the intersection between entertainment, tech, and business, so I really couldn’t have dreamt up a more perfect job for myself than here at YouTube!

What team are you working on at Google? Can you provide us with a high-level description of your summer project?
I’m on the Content & Partner Operations Team at YouTube in San Bruno, CA. I’m working with my manager to develop some of our partner communities and connect creators with each other. I’m also working on some programs and initiatives for our biggest superusers.

What’s the best part about working with your manager? What about your team?
My manager and team members are all really inspiring and enthusiastic! They were so welcoming to me when I first started my internship, and I’ve loved learning from them and getting to know them all.

We all know Googlers and interns love the food and the other benefits. Outside of some of the well-known perks, what’s your favorite part about working at Google?
I’m doing exactly what I always wanted to do when I started my own YouTube channel five years ago. I feel like I’m helping creators like myself move our platform forward. In addition, Google does an outstanding job of valuing their interns; I’m encouraged to participate in meetings and share my projects all the time. I even had the opportunity to attend the YouTube Global Content Summit in San Francisco during the first week of my internship, as well as VidCon down in Southern California a few weeks later!

What’s something you’ve accomplished during your internship (thus far) that you’re most proud of? Or something you’re looking forward to working on?
I became YouTube Certified at the beginning of the summer. I’ve also completed projects that will benefit YouTube partners of all kinds, but particularly those belonging to US Emerging Markets.

Outside of being a Google intern, what are some fun things you do outside the classroom/office throughout the year?
I’ve been singing and playing the piano my whole life! I started uploading to YouTube years ago, and though I’m just a casual creator, I really love making videos.

What does “being Googley” mean to you?
To me, being Googley means being professional, creative, confident, and respectful.

Dream Google office to visit?
YouTube Space Tokyo!

If you could give one piece of advice to potential student applicants, what would it be?
This is a cheesy answer, but be authentic! Google has so many departments and organizations, so express what your genuine passions are in your application, and you’ll thank yourself later.

Want to learn more about internships at Google? Check out our Student Careers Site. Additionally, follow Google Students on Google+ and use the hashtag #googleinterns to keep up with Intern Insights this summer.


Posted by Maggie Hohlfeld, University Programs Team

We’re excited to announce the winners of the AdMob Student App Challenge, a mobile app development contest open exclusively to students. Students from all over the world were challenged to build a great app and monetize it it using the AdMob platform, with a chance to win awesome prizes.

We had hundreds of app submissions from more than 90 countries and hosted more than 50 events worldwide. Our 5 winning apps have made a huge splash in the Google Play Store, and have already amassed over 300,000 downloads and nearly 6,000 reviews combined.

After extensive review, the judging panel selected 4 Regional Winners and 1 overall Global Winner. Artavazd Mehrabyab, a judge for the challenge and Co-founder/COO of PicsArt, says he was honored to be a part of the challenge, which he considered “a great demonstration of the large global potential for app development among [a] younger generation.”

Regional Winners receive brand new Nexus tablets, and our Global Winner will receive a free trip to San Francisco and visit Google in Mountain View!

Drumroll please…

GLOBAL WINNER – Stacks Flashcards
Team Name: Centum

About the team. It is Phani Gaddipati, a student from Colorado Springs, Colorado, who takes home the first-place prize. Having grown up in Colorado, Phani currently studies Biomedical Engineering at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland.

About the app. Stacks Flashcards is an electronic flashcards app that allows users to memorize material by creating decks of cards, testing their knowledge, and viewing stats on their performance. After his first Organic Chemistry class in college, Phani quickly realized that passing the class would require a lot of memorization. As he searched for an app that would allow him to create flashcards electronically, Phani found a distinct lack of quality apps of this kind, and wanted to build something great on Android. He decided to create one of his own, working hard to make sure that it was easy to navigate with a clean and intuitive user interface. Phani considers user feedback to be crucial to the success of his app, and is constantly working to improve the app’s functionality. Congratulations Phani for being an all-star developer, and creating an app that solves a simple problem in a meaningful way!

REGIONAL WINNERS:

REGIONAL WINNER 1: India 2014 Elections
Region: Asia Pacific
Team Name: DV DROID

About the team. DV Droid is made up of 5 teammates, Darshan H, Venkatesh K B, Shivaprasad K S, Chiranthan K and Santhosh R, from Tumkur, India. The group met as high school students then separated for college, but each decided to pursue degrees in Engineering at their respective universities.

About the app. India 2014 Elections is an informative app that gives a complete historical overview of the Indian Elections results from as far back as 1947, as well as information regarding the most recent 2014 elections cycle. When the team got wind of the AdMob Student challenge, the General Elections in India were fast approaching. They decided to capitalize on the opportunity to create an app that raised awareness among Indian citizens as to the importance of elections and the value of each and every vote. They set out to provide the public with an app that provided useful information in a beautiful way, and judging by its positive reception and success in the app store, they more than succeeded in their mission!

REGIONAL WINNER 2: Headphone Connect
Region: North America
Team Name: Skytrait Mobile

About the team. Skytrait Mobile is the brain-child of Gabriel Brandão, the team’s one and only member. Of Portuguese descent, Gabriel was born in Taiwan and is currently a junior at Towson University just outside of Baltimore, Maryland. In addition to his work, Gabriel would like to acknowledge his friend and classmate Juli Phillips, whom he regularly relied upon for user feedback and testing.

About the app. User simplicity was the foundation upon which Headphone Connect was developed. An “on action” based app, Headphone Connect allows users to assign certain apps to launch automatically as soon as their headphones are plugged in. Gabriel had seen apps that claimed to accomplish this purpose, but most were confusing and hard to set up. Sensing a gap in the market, Gabriel worked hard to create an app with a clean interface, simple setup and useful function. So far, the app has received nearly 2,000 5-star reviews on the Play Store and has been downloaded hundreds of thousands of times.

REGIONAL WINNER 3: Match Cube
Region: Latin America
Team Name: Kookei Studio

About the team. Kookei Studio is made up of two teammates, Leonardo Trench and Gabriele Priuli, both from the State of São Paulo in Brazil. They are currently in their 3rd year of university and are studying Information Systems.

About the app. Match Cube is a gaming app involving strategy and speed, where users match falling cubes according to color within a certain time limit. As he was researching various features in a game creation tool, Leonardo came across a falling cube and decided he wanted to develop a game using that general concept. When it came to app development, Leonardo and Gabriele had to build their knowledge base essentially from scratch, an impressive feat considering the consistently high ratings that their app has received in the Play Store thus far. The team maintains that the key to their early success was the ability to be creative and persistent, particularly in the face of challenges.

REGIONAL WINNER 4: High Explosive
Region: Europe, Middle East, Africa
Team Name: Archon Interactive

About the team. Casper Christiansen and Lucas Eliasen make up the illustrious team Archon Interactive, and are the brains behind the addictive gaming app High Explosive. Both Casper and Lucas come from Zealand, an island region of Denmark, and attend GameIT College in Grenaa. They’re currently studying a mix of HTX (Higher Technical Examination) and game development.

About the app. High Explosive is a puzzle/action game where users use the protagonist bomb to help them explode their way to the exits. To come up with their concept, Casper and Lucas spent many hours brainstorming amongst themselves, trying to think of a game that would be both engaging and different enough from other apps in the marketplace. Once they had the basic concept, they reached out to others to confirm the validity and value of the idea. When they began building the app, both Casper and Lucas were still fairly inexperienced as developers. However, they viewed the opportunity to learn new skills as a fun challenge, and resolved to start small and build upon their original idea in a consistent and measured way.

Congratulations to all the winners and thanks again to every single student who participated!

Posted by Sutton Brown, AdMob Marketing Team

Our interns have the opportunity to work on some of Google’s most cutting edge and innovative projects – not only in engineering, but across sales and other business functions, bringing a fresh perspective to the work done at Google. To show you just how much of an impact interns make and to highlight their unique experiences, we’re bringing you a special blog series: Google Intern Insights. Make sure to look out for the different interns being featured on the blog throughout the summer!

For today’s post, meet Dyanna Salcedo, an MBA intern on the Small and Medium Business Solutions (SMB) team.

Tell us one fun, outlandish fact about you!
I’ve played in a World Series of Poker Main Event!

What team are you working on at Google? Can you provide us with a high-level description of your summer project?
I work with the Small and Medium Businesses (SMB) Solutions team. I’m working on a comprehensive marketing analysis for a new Google product specifically targeted towards SMBs.

What’s the best part about working with your manager? What about your team?
My manager, Dong, and the team gave me an idea for this product and a lot of discretion. I like that I have full ownership of what I think is a very important project for Google. The team is great–everyone is friendly and genuinely excited to have me.

We all know Googlers and interns love the food and the other benefits. Outside of some of the well-known perks, what’s your favorite part about working at Google?
I like the community. I meet new people who are always up for coffee or lunch, weekend outings, etc. It’s like business school except I get paid!

What’s something you’ve accomplished during your internship (thus far) that you’re most proud of? Or something you’re looking forward to working on?
Since I’m coming from the finance industry, I’ve tried extra hard to ramp up on SMB needs. I probably read at least 15-20 articles or reports per day, but at least it’s all starting to click.

What does “being Googley” mean to you?
To be Googley is to be someone that others want to work with and be around. Everyone I’ve met so far is like that—friendly, welcoming, and helpful.

If you could give one piece of advice to potential student applicants, what would it be?
Learn as much as you can about the role for which you apply. That means reaching out to Googlers, reading industry news and blogs, and joining student organizations that help you stay immersed.

Best meal at Google so far?
The burritos at Quad’s Portal!

Outside of being a Google intern, what are some fun things you do outside the classroom/office throughout the year?
Well, I’m in business school so… just Google CBS Follies.

What’s your biggest pet peeve?
Inconsiderateness.

Best overheard conversation in a MK/cafe/elevator?
Googler engineers speaking Klingon to one another!

Dream Google office to visit?
Tokyo. Mostly because I love Tokyo.

Best gFit class?
I’ve only been to one so far, but I’m looking forward to checking out an Outdoor Fitness Sesh one day soon.

Best intern event you’ve attended?
An unofficial and unplanned MBA takeover of a San Francisco bar one Saturday afternoon. I ran into Googlers but also other friends I didn’t even realize were in the area.

Want to learn more about internships at Google? Check out our Student Careers Site. Additionally, follow Google Students on Google+ and use the hashtag #googleinterns to keep up with Intern Insights this summer.

Posted by Maggie Hohlfeld, University Programs Team

From Google Glass to Project Loon, Adwords to Docs, our interns have the opportunity to work on some of Google’s most cutting edge and innovative projects. Interns also work across sales and other business functions, bringing a fresh perspective to the work done at Google. To show you just how much of an impact interns make and to highlight their unique experiences, we’re bringing you a special blog series: Google Intern Insights. Make sure to look out for the different interns being featured on the blog throughout the summer!

Meet Fiona Yeung, a User Experience Design Intern working at our Mountain View Headquarters. Fiona is a graphic designer attending York University/Sheridan College in Toronto where she is pursuing a Bachelors in Design. When Fiona is not designing something, you can probably find her on the water training and racing other universities with the York University Dragon Boat team. She also enjoys travelling, exploring, and photography.

Tell us one fun, outlandish fact about you!
I’ve climbed 1,776 steps up the CN Tower in Toronto, the world’s tallest metal staircase with my family for charity. I’ve also completed Tough Mudder, a 12 mile obstacle challenge last fall with my dragon boat team!

What inspired you to apply for this internship, and what made Google appealing to you as a potential intern?
I wanted to learn from some of the most talented and innovative people in the industry. I also wanted to gain experience working at a larger company. With Google’s size, even though I would be focusing on one product area, I knew I would still get the chance to learn about all the other innovative projects that Google is working on such as the Self-driving Car, Google Glass, and Project Loon. Lastly, the internship program itself is extremely well-developed with tons of classes, workshops, and tech talks catered to help us develop our leadership and teamwork skills.

What team are you working on at Google? Can you provide us with a high-level description of your summer project?
I’m a user experience design intern for Google+, specifically on the core mobile app team. One of the projects that I’m working on this summer is to redesign Google suggested posts such as “Communities you might like” or “Trending” posts so that they’re consistent across all platforms. I get to think about what the animations and interactions will be like so that users can use these suggested posts better, while having a smooth and delightful experience.

What’s the best part about working with your manager? What about your team?
My manager Brynn is incredibly inspiring because she is proactive and a great leader. I love working with her because of her enthusiasm, passion, and great energy. I’m lucky to have a mentor like Brynn to guide me through the internship. I also admire her involvement in the design community where she created an event series for women in design called XX+UX. I hope to help her spread these series to even more cities and host one when I’m back home in Toronto!

The best part about working with my team is how collaborative and supportive everyone is. Being able to walk around and check out what everyone is working on, as well as our weekly Mocktails where we all gather together to share ideas and show what we’ve been working on is something I really enjoy.

We all know Googlers and interns love the food and the other benefits. Outside of some of the well-known perks, what’s your favorite part about working at Google?
My favorite part about working at Google is knowing that the work I’m doing will be impacting millions of users around the world. The culture at Google is also a huge plus. The environment is collaborative, open, and makes you feel welcomed. The people are humble and you really get a sense of community among each other.

What’s something you’ve accomplished during your internship (thus far) that you’re most proud of? Or something you’re looking forward to working on?
I’m proud of the iterations that I’ve created thus far because I get to push myself to think beyond the visual designs to really dig deeper into how users interact when using Google+. Working directly with engineers and project managers is something I’m new to so it’s been a really cool experience so far.

I also worked with the Google Doodle team as part of my 20% side project. As a designer, creating a Google Doodle has been on my designer bucket list for a long time so being able to work with the doodlers was a dream come true. The doodle I created was for the Tanabata festival for Japan.

What does “being Googley” mean to you?
Being “Googley” to me is about trying your best, doing the right thing, and being an all-around friendly and good person. Being genuine, humble, and having a positive attitude are all traits of a Googley person. It’s about striving for excellence, being proactive, having a good time all at the same time.

If you could give one piece of advice to potential student applicants, what would it be?
Don’t be afraid to ask questions. Team up with friends or people you know and create things that you’re passionate about. A lot of skills are learned outside of school so go ahead and work on side projects. It’s also helpful to have an entrepreneurial mindset; to be self-starters and leaders that are passionate to work on challenging projects to help the world.

Dream Google office to visit?
All of the Google offices are so well-designed for Googlers but one that I’d love to visit is the office in in Zurich, Switzerland. I heard they have an aquarium relaxation room, and that they have ski gondolas as small conference rooms.

Best gFit class?
I try to attend about 3-4 different gFit classes a week such as yoga, cardio kickboxing, and body pump. One of my favorite ones is the Aerial Silks class because it’s something I’ve always wanted to try. It’s incredible that these kinds of classes are offered here at Google.

Best intern event you’ve attended?
The intern carnival was really fun with the inflatable obstacle course race and mechanical bull, but I have to say the Sky High Trampoline Dodgeball day was the best so far. Bouncing on the trampoline, while dodging dodgeballs is a pretty fun way to meet new interns.

Fiona’s Googler host for the summer is Brynn Evans. Brynn is a Design Lead on the Google+ Team. In fact, Brynn joined Google on June 27, 2011 – one day before we launched Google+! Originally from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Brynn went to Stanford for her undergraduate degrees and UC San Diego for her graduate degree. Brynn looks forward to weekly time in the Pilates studio and is a member of the Google+ UX acapella group, the Whizzy Whigs.

Why did you want to work at Google?
I had worked previously at a startup, an agency, and as a freelance designer. I wanted to experience working at a large company, expecting that I’d learn new & different things.

What are you working on at Google?
I’m a UX Lead on the Google+ team. I started as an individual contributor, became Stream UX Lead, and then became a UX Lead for a larger team that’s responsible for the G+ core mobile apps, including onboarding, growth, and engagement.

Why did you want to host an Intern?
I never had an intern before, but I have been an intern and knew how immensely valuable it is to have good internships. I thought my team could provide a good environment for an intern. Additionally, I love teaching, mentoring, and advising — especially new grads. When I was recently out of school, I wish I had had a mentor to help guide me; instead now, I’m hoping I can be that mentor for others.

What’s the best part about your team?
The people! The designers on my team are incredibly talented, humble, and collaborative. They’ve taught me a tremendous amount and make coming into work everyday a pure joy. It’s true what they say: it’s the people that matter.

What’s the best part about working with your intern?
Her passion, excitement, and motivation! Fiona came into Google fired up and excited to get started on a project. Since then, she’s worked on an exploratory project, created a Google Doodle (which is extremely uncommon), and has also started her main intern project. Fiona’s got the talent to be good designer; but it’s her passion and motivation that will make her great!

What’s your favorite perk to utilize at Google?
Google offers Pilates Reformer classes that I take twice a week. It’s become such an important part of my routine that I never let meetings or conflicts get in the way of my two hours a week of “me time.”

What’s the thing you’ve accomplished during your career at Google that you’re most proud of?
Last October, I kicked off an event series called XX+UX — a monthly meetup for Women in UX. I quickly discovered that there is an eager & talented community of women UXers who love to connect and share stories. Until recently, there just hasn’t been an event series dedicated exclusively to bringing them together, so I’m proud to have played a role in that.

So far we’ve had events in the Bay Area, Austin, and Paris. This summer, we’ll be having inaugural XX+UX events in NYC, London, and Sydney!

What’s your favorite Google moment so far?
As a member of the Whizzy Whigs, the Google+ UX acapella group, we sang Bohemian Rhapsody at TGIF last year! It was incredibly fun being up on stage in front of the whole company!

What is one fun fact about you?
I can sing “If you’re happy and you know it” in Japanese.

Want to learn more about internships at Google? Check out our Student Careers Site. Additionally, follow Google Students on Google+ and use the hashtag #googleinterns to keep up with Intern Insights this summer.

Posted by Sidnie Davis, Intern Programs Team

Our interns have the opportunity to work on some of Google’s most cutting edge and innovative projects – not only in engineering, but across sales and other business functions, bringing a fresh perspective to the work done at Google. To show you just how much of an impact interns make and to highlight their unique experiences, we’re bringing you a special blog series: Google Intern Insights.

For today’s post, meet Shelbey Roberts, a BOLD intern in Mountain View on the GooglersGive team.

Tell us one fun, outlandish fact about you!
I’m an Android (kind of)! Last summer, one of my internship “projects” included walking around the Google New York office in a massively large, lime green Android costume greeting Nooglers (newly hired Googlers).

What inspired you to apply for this internship, and what made Google appealing to you as a potential intern?
One time, I watched a nightly news special on TV and it profiled Google and how it is consistently ranked among one of the best places to work in the entire world. I thought it was so interesting how Google developed such a successful company-wide operations strategy while still truly caring about their employees as human beings and being socially conscious of the world. One day I thought, “Wouldn’t it be cool to be able to say I interned for a place like that?” From there, I applied and the rest is history!

Outside of being a Google intern, what are some fun things you do outside the classroom/office throughout the year?
I’m an anchor and a producer for the University of Michigan’s student-run television station called WOLV-TV. I write news content, operate cameras and audio switchboards and I get to be on air for our campus-wide audience! It’s hard work and long hours, but so much fun!

What team are you working on at Google? Can you provide us with a high-level description of your summer project?
As a BOLD intern, I work with the GooglersGive team which coordinates many of the volunteering and giving initiatives that allow Googlers to help out local communities and other places around the world. My core project includes developing, advertising, distributing and analyzing a global GooglersGive internal survey, of which we use the feedback to improve Googlers’ overall experience with our volunteering and giving programs as well as increase participation.

What’s the best part about working with your manager? What about your team?
The best part about working with my manager and the rest of my team is that our entire job is to come together to develop and implement strategies that will help improve the communities around us and around the globe. From organizing company-wide community service opportunities, to encouraging employees to donate to charity, to launching environmental, hunger, and education campaigns, we are able to provide Googlers with opportunities to give back in a tangible way. We make an impact and it’s a great feeling!

What is something that you’ve learned thus far about working on a team and/or in a professional environment?
When you’re working with a team, a positive attitude goes a longgg way! Team members tend to appreciate seeing a smiling face or hearing an encouraging word especially in the midst of stressful projects and tight deadlines. That kind of happy spirit is contagious! Plus nobody likes working with a negative Nancy!

We all know Googlers and interns love the food and the other benefits. Outside of some of the well-known perks, what’s your favorite part about working at Google?
The coolest thing I find is that Google trusts its interns to work on projects that full-time employees would work on. In my case, my team implements changes to their global volunteering and giving programs partly as a result of the data results that I provide them with. Even as an intern, my team not only values my opinions, but they also encourage me to voice my thoughts on how we as a team can improve the work that we do. It’s nice to know that I am able to contribute.

What’s something you’ve accomplished during your internship (thus far) that you’re most proud of? Or something you’re looking forward to working on?
I have officially overcome my discomfort with numbers! Before this summer, I was never the most confident person when it came to statistics and other forms of math. Quite frankly, if it had to do with numbers, I wanted nothing to do with it. But this summer, my entire project is data driven which requires me to frequently use math and problem solving. With the help of my team, I have been able to do things like learn Excel, analyze data, and transform a weakness into a developing skill. I am very proud of myself for keeping an open mind throughout this entire project!

What does “being Googley” mean to you?
To me, if you’re Googley, you’re not only intelligent and capable of doing your job, but you also convey a personality of friendliness and willingness to get to know others.

Best meal at Google so far?
The chicken, waffle, egg and bacon breakfast sandwich from the Cluck It Up food truck is absolutely incredible! It’s a glorious mix of sweet, salty and unhealthy topped off with bacon!

If you could give one piece of advice to potential student applicants, what would it be?
First step: You won’t know until you try, so just apply! Second step: Really use the application to showcase who you are as a person. Many students who apply have the performance skills needed for the job, but try to find your personal Googley fact and include it. Maybe you broke a world record, or you’re a national champion of something, or you started your own business or maybe you just have a very interesting personal background story. Whatever your BOLD fact is, think about highlighting it to show what sets you apart from everyone else.

Want to learn more about internships at Google? Check out our Student Careers Site. Additionally, follow Google Students on Google+ and use the hashtag #googleinterns to keep up with Intern Insights this summer.

Posted by Maggie Hohlfeld, University Programs Team